Driver pleads guilty in drunken drag race crash that killed pedestrian in Kansas City
.jpg "A 23-year-old Kansas City woman as struck and killed by a car in a hit-and-run near 43rd and Main streets.")
A 24-year-old Kansas City woman has pleaded guilty to two felonies in the death of 23-year-old Zahara Kathawalla, a pedestrian killed as vehicles drag raced down Main Street nearly two years ago, according to court documents.
Shabazz L. Frencher pleaded guilty Friday to one count each of drunken driving that result in the death of Kathawalla and leaving the scene of a fatal crash, according to court documents. Prosecutors dropped charges of involuntary manslaughter and driving with a revoked or suspended license.
Frencher’s sentencing has been set for 1:30 p.m. June 10.
The crash occurred just before 2:30 a.m. June 21 near 43rd and Main streets as Kathawalla was crossing Main. Frencher, who turned herself in later that day, wasn’t charged until months later.
According to court documents, Frencher told police that she drank a bottle of liquor and five shots in Westport. Her cousin’s friend gave her the keys to her car to park and she left the area with another friend.
Frencher was driving when a Dodge Magnum pulled alongside and someone inside asked if they wanted to race, according to court documents. Frencher told police she didn’t want to because “she was drunk and wanted to go home.”
After someone in the Dodge asked if there was a “wheeler,” or a good driver, in the car, Frencher began to race and said, “I am the wheeler,” according to court documents.
Frencher, who reached speeds of 96 mph in a 35 mph zone, said she was at the stop line by the time she saw Kathawalla and slammed on the brakes. At the time she hit Kathawalla, Frencher was driving 67 mph, according to court documents.
Frencher’s friend in the car told police she yelled “stop” after seeing Kathawalla and repeatedly told Frencher to turn around so they could check on the pedestrian who was struck.
Frencher, however, kept driving and eventually parked the car in a neighborhood with “the good houses,” and ripped off the temporary tag. Her cousin and her cousin’s friend picked her up at a gas station.
About an hour after the crash, Frencher called the owner of the car and told her about the crash. She said she “was not sure if she hit or ‘tapped someone.’”
In response to growing concerns over illegal street racing, the Kansas City City Council last year passed stiffer penalties for those who break the law.
This story was originally published March 15, 2022 at 8:43 AM.
